Formally reprimanding

House Democrats likely to force action on measure formally reprimanding Clay Higgins

Higgins has faced a backlash for a social media post disparaging Haitians.

By Nicholas Wu, Daniella Diaz and Olivia Beavers

Rep. Clay Higgins (R-La.) infuriated many of his House colleagues with his since-deleted racist X post about Haitian migrants, prompting a top Black Democrat to introduce a measure to formally reprimand him that will likely see a floor vote.

Congressional Black Caucus Chair Rep. Steven Horsford (D-Nev.) is expected to force action on the censure resolution when the House returns after the November election. Disciplinary measures like censure can be “privileged,” meaning they can bypass committee on a fast track to the House floor. Horsford sought privilege on the measure Wednesday, which can kick-start the two-legislative day clock to force it onto the House floor.

And while it is unclear how many Republicans would back the resolution, at least one House Republican told POLITICO they plan to support it. Others said they were flabbergasted that Higgins refused to admit fault and that Speaker Mike Johnson side-stepped a public reprimand.

While Congressional Black Caucus members — and House Democrats, broadly — have voiced anger with Higgins’ social media language, the House can’t act on the censure resolution while the chamber is out of session. It’s also unclear if Democrats are going to use the post in the final month of the campaign to tie his words to other Republicans or make the post a campaign issue more broadly.

But Democrats still say they are incensed and want to seek punishment for him in Congress. Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) urged the bloc to support the censure against Higgins.

“We urge all of our colleagues in Congress to support the Congressional Black Caucus’ resolution censuring Representative Higgins and holding him accountable for his dangerous comments when the House returns in November,” she said in a statement.

Higgins had written a now-deleted post on the platform X — using his official congressional account — that called Haitians "wild" and added: "Eating pets, vudu, nastiest country in the western hemisphere, cults, slapstick gangster ... but damned if they don't feel all sophisticated now, filing charges against our President and VP. All these thugs better get their mind right and their ass out of our country before January 20th."

He later doubled down that “it’s all true,” when asked by CNN about his now-deleted post. When asked for comment, Higgins' office pointed to comments to reporters Thursday morning when Higgins said "you never want to intentionally hurt someone's feelings" and said the post was "intended for Haitian gangs. I mean Haiti is a country, not a color."

Higgins, who hails from the same state as the top two Republicans in House leadership, has seen a series of promotions with Johnson holding the gavel, including being named a GOP impeachment manager and a member of the highly sought-after Trump assassination task force, among other leadership nods.

If the effort falters when the House returns, Democrats might resurface it or find other ways to punish Higgins if control of the House flips. House censures have become more common in recent years. House Democrats censured Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) last Congress after he posted an anime video depicting him committing violence against Democrats, and Republicans issued the formal reprimand to Reps. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) this Congress.